​​​​​​​Mark Skirving
​​​Artist
Portraits
A commissioned portrait will stand the test of time and the memory you immortalise on canvas will be a treasure for years to come. This must be one of the most personal gifts anyone could be given.
My Portrait Technique
One of the constant attractions I find in portrait work is the magical moment when the inanimate materials of pigment and oils turn into a living painting. A careful flick of white suddenly becomes the glint in a person’s eye or a subtle stroke of shade becomes the start of a smile. It is the combination of both art and craft that produces a successful portrait.
I can work from both a traditional ‘sitting’, photographs, or a combination of both, whatever is convenient for you. My preferred medium is oil, painted on linen canvas. Any other questions please let me know.
All the best.
Mark
A Future Treasure
Portrait painting has once again established itself as an important record for our modern age. The photographic image has become an unsatisfying, disposable item, typified in glossy throw-away magazines or ‘never to be printed’ pictures on your digital cameras. People are now looking for a more permanent record of their loved ones.
Portraits start from £1000
Portraits are fixed in time and space, at a select angle of vision, and yet need to convey intensity and be revealing. They should have impact at a single glance, and compel the observer to return again and again. The portrait should display the likeness of the subject, but also allow character and personality [what Leonardo da Vinci called "the motions of inner mind"] to show through.
To commission a painting, portrait or discuss any project, please leave me a message and I'll get straight back to you.
Many Thanks
Mark
Commissioned Portraits Undertaken
Beautifully Painted in Oils
On the Finest Italian Linen
A true family tradition
Skirving's portrait of Robbie Burns 1796
Skirving 250 Years of Fine British Portraiture
Mark Skirving
Self Portrait 2010
Archibald Skirving 1749-1819 Self Portrait 1790
Portrait of Helen 2013